Interior
designer Heather Scott suggested white walls to accent the
dramatic architecture of the kitchen and adjoining great room
and to link the spaces visually.

Inspired
Design

Dream Kitchens
Inc. co-owner Terri Schmidt and her team had their work cut out for
them in designing a kitchen to rise to the level of the Frank Lloyd
Wright-inspired architecture of the home. The empty-nester homeowners
wanted a kitchen in keeping with the architecture, and one that would
accommodate entertaining.

"The open
design of the kitchen had to flow perfectly with the rest of the
living space," Schmidt says. "The living area has three
distinct rooms with the kitchen in the middle.

Two large
islands double as seating or workstations; double ovens buffer the
kitchen from the living area. A dramatic stainless steel range hood
becomes a work of art as it soars to the ceiling. Mahogany cabinets
present strong horizontal lines in the design and contrast with the
bamboo cabinets on the perimeter island. Mahogany was also used as an
accent and varying heights in surfaces continue a layered and
horizontal visual appeal. "Clean lines complement the space and
flow beautifully from room to room," Schmidt says.

Other features
include a butlerís pantry and wrap-around wet bar.

The Delafield
firm received a second place award for open plan kitchen design from
the National Kitchen and Bath Association in its 2011 NKBA Design
Competition.

Interior
designer Heather Scott suggested white walls to accent the
dramatic architecture of the kitchen and adjoining great room
and to link the spaces visually.

Going Natural

The 1994
Brookfield condo had a lot going for it: close to restaurants and
shopping, yet secluded along a man-made waterway and wetlands. But its
interior was dark, dated and disjointed. The views and the bones of
the condo gave it enough potential for the current homeowners to make
an offer. "What we loved was the way the outside became a part of
the inside," the homeowner says.

The couple
collaborated with Heather Scott of Heather Scott Designs Inc.,
Brookfield, to negotiate between his preference for natural wood and
her wish for a stark white interior. Though the walls and cabinets are
white, the furnishings and finishes are textural and neutral, making
both husband and wife happy.

"I think
the challenge initially was making the space work right," Scott
says. "It wasnít restful when you came into it. The beautiful
barrel-roll ceiling of the foyer didnít anchor itself
anywhere."

The neutral
palette doesnít compete with the greenery outside the numerous
windows. Scott layered textures and tones, and used multiple finishes,
from honed to polished, to create a calming, welcoming space.

She calls the
design process an evolution of ideas. "It is such a mesh of the
homeowner and the designer, and great ideas coming together,"
Scott says.

The project
received a 2010 Wisconsin Remodelers Gold Award for residential
interior.

"I had
visions of always having a place like this with high bookshelves and
dream appliances," the homeowner says, who has a background in
the culinary field and an art degree. Her original artwork is
displayed both on the bookshelves and in the condoís foyer.

Kitchen details
include black honed Absolute granite with a double laminated edge on
the island, painted maple cabinetry with flat shaker panels, a Wolf
range and a glass-door refrigerator. The cabinets draw the eye up to
the interesting ceiling architecture and skylights.

Homeowners
Jim and Darla Schneider worked with AB&K to redo the
kitchen of their Pewaukee Lake condo.

Artistís
Eye

As a former art
teacher, Darla Schneider immediately appreciated the sculptural
details of the cabinetry she saw at the AB&K showroom. That became
the jumping off point for the kitchen she and husband Jim were redoing
in their new town of Delafield condo on Pewaukee Lake.

Though the condo
was built in the mid-1990s, it has undergone a head-to-toe
transformation, including new carpeting throughout, updated bathrooms
and a revamped kitchen.

"We saw the
potential here," Schneider says. "We knew this was one of
the better units because of the view and we knew we could do something
with it. Some was cosmetic and other stuff was ripped out and
redone."

They liked the
archway between the kitchen and the living room, but the kitchen
itself was closed off from the adjacent dining room and was laid out
awkwardly. Again, Schneiderís art background came into play.
"Art has so much to do with spacial concepts," she says. She
also has experience building and remodeling previous residences, and
helping friends and family with interior decorating.

The space was
reorganized to move the refrigerator to another wall and the stove,
which was originally under the window, was moved down to create more
counter space. A half wall between the kitchen and dining room was
removed.

The Typhoon
Bordeaux granite dictated the soft brown tones and terra cotta colors,
Schneider says, and the porcelain tile backsplash and Murano glass
inset above the stove added interest. "The porcelain gave it the
punch that I was looking for. I liked the contrast and the
shape," she says.

Their previous
home is just a few minutes away, and the couple hope to make a
permanent move to the condo as soon as the house is sold. "Weíll
have a lot more visitors when we are on the lake," Schneider
predicts. With their new kitchen, they are ready for entertaining.